PHILADELPHIA (AP) ? Philadelphia is getting ready for a supersized game of Pong.
The classic Atari video game will come to life on the facade of a 29-story skyscraper. Hundreds of built-in LED lights at the Cira (SEAR'-ah) Centre will replicate the familiar paddles and ball.
The effort is the brainchild of Frank Lee, a Drexel University game-design professor.
Pong will be played April 19 and 24, to bookend an event called Philly Tech Week.
The black-and-white arcade game introduced in 1972 had no complicated graphics, just geometric shapes. Players controlled digital paddles and tried to hit the ball so their opponents could not return it. A home version paved the way for the game console industry.
In Philadelphia, gamers will control their paddles from afar, standing across the Schuylkill (SKOO'-kul) River from the building.
New app, new hardware (yes, really) and a new approach to social on Android! Join us for the liveblog!
Greetings from beautiful Silicon Valley, California! We're at Facebook HQ this morning for the big "Facebook Phone" event, where we fully expect to see a new app, custom launcher and -- crazy as it seems -- a new, dedicated smartphone.
Quite frankly, Facebook's got some explaining to do with all this, and we're itching to get the full scoop.
Livebloggage will commence at the following times:
10 a.m. PDT (that's the U.S. West Coast -- the best coast)
1 p.m. EDT (New York and Roanoke)
6 p.m. BST (in London Town)
And all points in between.
Join us after the break for the complete liveblog, with photos and commentary from the event, your comments, and basically the biggest party from the most trusted name in Android!
As much as we love Google Drive, its neither the prettiest nor simplest cloud storage interface. New UI tweaks rolling out to users starting today aren't suddenly going to change that hierarchy too much, but they should add some much needed polish. When you view shared folders now, you'll get a much more visually appealing layout and access to the new preview function that lets you quickly flip between files. And, perhaps the most welcome change, is the new "Add to Dive" button that will conspicuously live in the upper right-hand corner. Now adding shared material to your own Drive account is just a single click away. Normally, this is where we'd say hit up the source for more details, but that's really it. Enjoy!
FILE - This June 30, 2012 file photo shows British pop star Elton John performing during the Euro 2012 soccer championship in Kiev, Ukraine. The Songwriters Hall of Fame announced Tuesday, April 2, 2013, that Elton John and Bernie Taupin will be the 2013 recipients of the esteemed Johnny Mercer Award. The 44th Annual Induction and Awards Dinner is slated for Thursday, June 13 in New York. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky, file)
FILE - This June 30, 2012 file photo shows British pop star Elton John performing during the Euro 2012 soccer championship in Kiev, Ukraine. The Songwriters Hall of Fame announced Tuesday, April 2, 2013, that Elton John and Bernie Taupin will be the 2013 recipients of the esteemed Johnny Mercer Award. The 44th Annual Induction and Awards Dinner is slated for Thursday, June 13 in New York. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky, file)
NEW YORK (AP) ? Elton John and his longtime songwriting partner, Bernie Taupin, will be honored at this year's Songwriters Hall of Fame induction ceremony.
John and Taupin, who teamed on most of the singer's best-known hits, will receive the Johnny Mercer Award during the June 13 ceremony in New York.
A Tuesday news release says the award goes to previous inductees ? John and Taupin were inducted in 1992 ? whose body of work upholds the standards set by Mercer, a co-founder of Capitol Records.
John and Taupin have teamed on some of rock 'n' roll's most well-known songs, including "Rocket Man," ''Crocodile Rock," ''Daniel" and "Candle in the Wind."
This year's inductees are Steven Tyler and Joe Perry of Aerosmith, Mick Jones and Lou Gramm of Foreigner, Holly Knight, JD Souther and Tony Hatch.
Apr. 2, 2013 ? Studying volcanos can be hazardous work, both for researchers and aircraft. To penetrate such dangerous airspace, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), especially those with electric engines that ingest little contaminated air, are an emerging and effective way to gather crucial data about volcanic ash and gases.
Last month, a team of NASA researchers deployed three repurposed military UAVs with special instruments into and above the noxious sulfur dioxide plume of Costa Rica's active Turrialba volcano, near San Jose. The project was designed to improve the remote-sensing capability of satellites, including satellite data research products such as maps of the concentration and distribution of volcanic gases. It was also designed to improve computer models of how and where volcanic plumes will travel.
Led by principal investigator David Pieri of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., the team launched 10 flights of the remote controlled UAVs into the volcanic plume and above the rim of Turrialba's 10,500-foot (3,200-meter) summit crater between March 11 and 14.
The small, twin electric engine Dragon Eye UAVs were acquired by researchers at NASA's Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., from the United States Marine Corps. Weighing less than six pounds (2.2 kilograms) each and with a wingspan of 3.75 feet (1.1 meters), they have visible and infrared video cameras and can carry a one-pound instrument payload for up to an hour within a volcanic plume. The researchers equipped them with sulfur dioxide and particle sensors and automatic atmospheric sampling bottles keyed to measure sulfur dioxide concentration.
During the flights, the team coordinated its data gathering with NASA's Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) instrument on NASA's Terra spacecraft, allowing scientists to compare sulfur dioxide concentration measurements from the satellite with measurements taken from within the plume.
Scientists believe computer models derived from this study will contribute to safeguarding the National and International Airspace System, and will also improve global climate predictions and mitigate environmental hazards (e.g., sulfur dioxide volcanic smog, or "vog") for people who live near volcanoes.
A key constituent of such models is the intensity and character of the volcanic activity located near the eruption vent. For instance, knowing the height of ash and gas concentrations, and temperatures over the vent during an eruption are important initial factors for any model that predicts the direction of the volcanic plume.
"It is very difficult to gather data from within volcanic eruption columns and plumes because updraft wind speeds are very high and high ash concentrations can quickly destroy aircraft engines," said Pieri. "Such flight environments can be very dangerous to manned aircraft. Volcanic eruption plumes may stretch for miles from a summit vent, and detached ash clouds can drift hundreds to thousands of miles from an eruption site."
The project supports NASA's ASTER mission as well as JPL's planned Hyperspectral Infrared Imager (HyspIRI) satellite mission by improving satellite data-based retrievals of gases and solid aerosols associated with volcanic activity, as well as volcanic emission transport models. HyspIRI will study the world's ecosystems and provide critical information on natural disasters such as volcanoes, assessing their pre-eruptive behavior and the likelihood of future eruptions.
For more information, read the full Ames feature at: http://www.nasa.gov/topics/earth/earthmonth/volcanic-plume-uavs.html . For more on NASA's Airborne Science Program, visit: http://airbornescience.nasa.gov/ . For more on HyspIRI, visit: http://hyspiri.jpl.nasa.gov/ . For more on ASTER, visit: http://asterweb.jpl.nasa.gov/ .
JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.
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SAN DIEGO (AP) -- A Department of Defense employee who oversaw construction contracts at Camp Pendleton used his position to extort bribes from businesses seeking to work on the California Marine Corps base, federal prosecutors said Monday.
Natividad Lara Cervantes was arrested Thursday after authorities say he accepted $10,000 of a $40,000 bribe offered by a witness working with federal agents, said Daphne Hearn, the special agent in charge of the FBI's San Diego office.
Cervantes believed he was receiving the money in exchange for helping the witness secure a $4 million flooring contract, according to a federal complaint.
Prosecutors say Cervantes referred to himself as the "Godfather at Camp Pendleton," and, dating back to September 2008, he accepted thousands of dollars in cash payments and remodeling work on his condominium in exchange for helping contractors get business on the Marine Corps base north of San Diego.
Cervantes is a Department of Defense employee and a supervisor for construction and service contracts at Camp Pendleton.
Neither Cervantes nor his lawyer could be reached for comment.
According to the complaint, the witness working with the FBI met with Cervantes on March 26 and agreed to pay the $40,000 bribe. The first payment of $20,000 was to be paid Thursday, and the remainder was to be paid when the contract was awarded, prosecutors say. The meeting was monitored by federal agents.
Cervantes was arrested at a business in San Diego after the witness met him there to discuss the bribe payments and handed him an envelope containing $10,000, according to the complaint.
Yep, you read the title right. Sweat, not sweets. Saturday was the first of two baby showers for my sister. Since her husband comes from a large Southie family, we split it up into two so that there were not over 70 guests and she could enjoy talking to everyone. There were over 50 guests on Saturday, but the gift opening was quick and painless featuring tutu?s, bathing suits, bruins jerseys and more clothes than I could have imagined.
For dessert, I had a carrot cupcake which was enormous and tasted delicious. They were from Sweet Tooth on Broadway in Southie, which I love.?I went for a 6 mile run before hand and was glad considering the cupcake was probably more than that. After the shower, I felt the effects of the sugar overload. I?m technically ?insane? when it comes to sugar. I know it makes me feel like crap, but I still can?t say no to the cupcakes. In the middle of the night, I woke up sweating and know it was a result of the garbage I ate during the day.
The party was supposed to be a surprise and I think it was achieved for the most part! There was a fun candy bar that was gone by the end for guests to take home goodie bags. I loaded up on the white chocolate malt balls and jelly beans.?
We were also given a lottery ticket at each of our seats. The baby?s great aunt won $100! I haven?t actually checked my ticket yet but I would assume if there was a big winner I would have heard about it, right? I love this idea for party gifts. My sister?s mother-in-law also bought scratch tickets for the bridal shower back in June.
Saturday morning was the first time I?ve been running in a while. It was nice to enjoy wearing sunblock and my Oakley Warm Up glasses once again. The fresh air felt amazing. I put my Bar Method membership on hold for the next two months to dedicate to my triathlon training. I?m going to be cycling at Recycle Studio, cross training at the Boston Sports Club with their small group training class UXF and running on my own with the occasional swim. I?m meeting with someone tomorrow to talk about training!?
I took Sunday off from working out, as I did Friday too. My body was tired and it felt good to just get some extra sleep.
If you are thinking right now, ?Didn?t your sister just get married?? you are right. The baby was lovely gift from the honeymoon. I have found this to be a pretty popular trend recently among my friends. Is this just me or you too?
CAIRO (Reuters) - Egyptian prosecutors questioned Egypt's most prominent television satirist on Sunday over allegations he insulted the president and Islam, a case that has increased opposition fears of a crackdown on dissent.
Bassem Youssef rose to fame after the uprising that swept Hosni Mubarak from power in 2011, with a satirical online show. His program, that has been compared to the Daily Show of U.S. satirist Jon Stewart, is now broadcast on Egyptian TV.
The comedian is accused, among other things, of undermining the standing of Islamist President Mohamed Mursi. The prosecutor general issued an arrest warrant for him on Saturday after at least four legal complaints filed by Mursi supporters.
An official in the prosecutor general's office confirmed that questioning had begun. Youssef voluntarily showed up at the prosecutor general's office on Sunday, so as to avoid arrest.
He was wearing an oversized version of a graduation hat modeled on one donned by the president when he was awarded an honorary degree in Pakistan earlier in March.
Youssef has worn the hat on his widely-watched show, one of many satirical jabs at the president. Last year, he poked fun of Mursi's repeated use of the word "love" by singing a love song to a red pillow with the president's face printed on it.
The questioning of the comedian has raised fears over freedom expression in the post-Mubarak Egypt.
"It is an escalation in an attempt to restrict space for critical expression," said Heba Morayef, Egypt director at Human Rights Watch.
Prominent liberal politician Mohamed ElBaradei said it was the kind actions only seen in "fascist regimes". "It is the continuation of the failed and ugly moves to thwart the revolution," he said.
Youssef's questioning came after the prosecutor general issued five arrest warrants for prominent political activists accused of inciting violence against the Muslim Brotherhood, the group that propelled Mursi to power in last year's election.
The prosecutor's office has also summoned several other prominent media figures for questioning over accusations they insulted the president.
Opposition figures say the prosecutor, Talaat Ibrahim, is biased towards Mursi, who appointed him last November, and they want him removed from office.
A court ruled last week that Ibrahim's appointment was illegal and that he must step down. Ibrahim, who denies any bias, plans to appeal the ruling.
If there's one thing tech nerds need more than anything else it's style - these days, warmth. Which is why TechCrunch's European team (Ingrid, Mike, Natasha and Steve) are excited to announce the launch of our very own range of softwear: Unerdwear. Knowing that Europe's weather is starting to resemble a feature-length episode of Game Of Thromes (Winter is coming? it's still here? when will it end??? etc...), we hope you'll join us in this endeavour by signing up pre-launch. We've obviously handed in our notice to Eric and Alexia and will all be shortly leaving TechCrunch to go full time into the hot (we hope) world of 3D Undergarment Printing.
Tests to predict heart problems may be more useful predictor of memory loss than dementia testsPublic release date: 1-Apr-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Rachel Seroka rseroka@aan.com 612-928-6129 American Academy of Neurology
MINNEAPOLIS Risk prediction tools that estimate future risk of heart disease and stroke may be more useful predictors of future decline in cognitive abilities, or memory and thinking, than a dementia risk score, according to a new study published in the April 2, 2013, print issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
"This is the first study that compares these risk scores with a dementia risk score to study decline in cognitive abilities 10 years later," said Sara Kaffashian, PhD, with the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research (INSERM) in Paris, France.
The study involved 7,830 men and women with an average age of 55. Risk of heart disease and stroke (cardiovascular disease) and risk of dementia were calculated for each participant at the beginning of the study.
The heart disease risk score included the following risk factors: age, blood pressure, treatment for high blood pressure, high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, total cholesterol, smoking, and diabetes. The stroke risk score included age, blood pressure, treatment for high blood pressure, diabetes, smoking, history of heart disease, and presence of cardiac arrhythmia (irregular heart beat).
The dementia risk score included age, education, blood pressure, body mass index (BMI), total cholesterol, exercise, and whether a person had the APOE ?4 gene, a gene associated with dementia.
Memory and thinking abilities were measured three times over 10 years.
The study found that all three risk scores predicted 10-year decline in multiple cognitive tests. However, heart disease risk scores showed stronger links with cognitive decline than a dementia risk score. Both heart and stroke risk were associated with decline in all cognitive tests except memory; dementia risk was not linked with decline in memory and verbal fluency.
"Although the dementia and cardiovascular risk scores all predict cognitive decline starting in late middle age, cardiovascular risk scores may have an advantage over the dementia risk score for use in prevention and for targeting changeable risk factors since they are already used by many physicians. The findings also emphasize the importance of risk factors for cardiovascular disease such as high cholesterol and high blood pressure in not only increasing risk of heart disease and stroke but also having a negative impact on cognitive abilities," said Kaffashian.
###
The study was supported by Rgion Ile-de-France, the Medical Research Council, the British
Heart Foundation, the Health and Safety Executive, the French Department of Health, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, the National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Aging, Agency for Health Care Policy Research and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
To learn more about dementia, visit http://www.aan.com/patients.
The American Academy of Neurology, an association of more than 26,000 neurologists and neuroscience professionals, is dedicated to promoting the highest quality patient-centered neurologic care. A neurologist is a doctor with specialized training in diagnosing, treating and managing disorders of the brain and nervous system such as Alzheimer's disease, stroke, migraine, multiple sclerosis, brain injury, Parkinson's disease and epilepsy.
For more information about the American Academy of Neurology, visit http://www.aan.com or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and YouTube.
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Tests to predict heart problems may be more useful predictor of memory loss than dementia testsPublic release date: 1-Apr-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Rachel Seroka rseroka@aan.com 612-928-6129 American Academy of Neurology
MINNEAPOLIS Risk prediction tools that estimate future risk of heart disease and stroke may be more useful predictors of future decline in cognitive abilities, or memory and thinking, than a dementia risk score, according to a new study published in the April 2, 2013, print issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
"This is the first study that compares these risk scores with a dementia risk score to study decline in cognitive abilities 10 years later," said Sara Kaffashian, PhD, with the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research (INSERM) in Paris, France.
The study involved 7,830 men and women with an average age of 55. Risk of heart disease and stroke (cardiovascular disease) and risk of dementia were calculated for each participant at the beginning of the study.
The heart disease risk score included the following risk factors: age, blood pressure, treatment for high blood pressure, high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, total cholesterol, smoking, and diabetes. The stroke risk score included age, blood pressure, treatment for high blood pressure, diabetes, smoking, history of heart disease, and presence of cardiac arrhythmia (irregular heart beat).
The dementia risk score included age, education, blood pressure, body mass index (BMI), total cholesterol, exercise, and whether a person had the APOE ?4 gene, a gene associated with dementia.
Memory and thinking abilities were measured three times over 10 years.
The study found that all three risk scores predicted 10-year decline in multiple cognitive tests. However, heart disease risk scores showed stronger links with cognitive decline than a dementia risk score. Both heart and stroke risk were associated with decline in all cognitive tests except memory; dementia risk was not linked with decline in memory and verbal fluency.
"Although the dementia and cardiovascular risk scores all predict cognitive decline starting in late middle age, cardiovascular risk scores may have an advantage over the dementia risk score for use in prevention and for targeting changeable risk factors since they are already used by many physicians. The findings also emphasize the importance of risk factors for cardiovascular disease such as high cholesterol and high blood pressure in not only increasing risk of heart disease and stroke but also having a negative impact on cognitive abilities," said Kaffashian.
###
The study was supported by Rgion Ile-de-France, the Medical Research Council, the British
Heart Foundation, the Health and Safety Executive, the French Department of Health, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, the National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Aging, Agency for Health Care Policy Research and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
To learn more about dementia, visit http://www.aan.com/patients.
The American Academy of Neurology, an association of more than 26,000 neurologists and neuroscience professionals, is dedicated to promoting the highest quality patient-centered neurologic care. A neurologist is a doctor with specialized training in diagnosing, treating and managing disorders of the brain and nervous system such as Alzheimer's disease, stroke, migraine, multiple sclerosis, brain injury, Parkinson's disease and epilepsy.
For more information about the American Academy of Neurology, visit http://www.aan.com or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and YouTube.
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
If there's one thing tech nerds need more than anything else it's style - these days, warmth. Which is why TechCrunch's European team (![[ Back to EurekAlert! ]](http://www.eurekalert.org/images/back2e.gif){kind=small}
Public release date: 1-Apr-2013
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